JUCO running back signs with Illinois State

Junior college running back Collin Keoshian has signed a national letter of intent on Wednesday to play at Illinois State.

Keoshian, a 6-foot-3, 245-pound back from Glendale Community College (Calif.), will enroll at ISU in January and have two years of eligibility remaining.

The native of Santa Clarita, Calif., will help lessen the loss of senior running back Darrelynn Dunn.

"We were looking for a big, strong back that we could use for our inside running game and Collin fits that mold well," ISU coach Brock Spack said. "He has very good ball skills to go along with his running abilities, which will allow us to throw the ball to him out of the backfield. With his size, he also gives us the opportunity to protect our quarterback better in our protection schemes. I think Collin hits a home run for us because of his abilities to excel in every aspect of what we want a running back in this offense to do, and we are excited to have him in the program."

Keoshian rushed for 1,265 yards and 11 touchdowns in nine games for Glendale CC this season. He spent a redshirt season at Brigham Young in 2010 and transferred to the College of the Canyons in 2011 before his standout 2012 season at Glendale.

Illinois State was 9-4 this season, reaching the FCS national quarterfinals.